Not If I Say So
by The Dark Knight's Revenge
Summary: Sequel to "Not Yet". Things have fallen apart since Jyn and Cassian settled on Selliyan VI. Jyn is gone, two of his children are dead, two scattered to the wind. Cassian went back to the Rebellion because it was only thing left for him. But then his daughter turns up, alive, after 20 years on Jakku and joins the fight as the most powerful Jedi the galaxy has seen.


Cassian Andor looked up at the clear sky of Selliyan VI, the twin suns pulsing down warmly on his shoulders in spite of the early winter chill. He leaned heavily on his shovel, a familiar twinge of pain working its way through his hips and lower back, souvenirs of long-ago battle wounds.

"Father." Kelton said from behind him. He turned and smiled as he saw his fifteen-year-old son carrying a bundle of food towards him. After a hard day's work in the fields, nothing was so good as his wife's fresh-baked bread.

"Papa!" A sweet voice called out. He turned to see his other son Bodhran carrying his baby sister over the rocky fields, Jyn not far behind, her stomach already swollen with another baby on the way.

Cassian leaned down to bury his face in Jyn's neck, kissing her soft skin. It was hardly surprising they had 3 children and another on the way. There had been many years when they were trying to find a peaceful place to escape the aftermath of the Empire while raising a toddler that they thought Jyn wouldn't be able to have any more; the stress of Kelton's birth having placed too much strain on her body. But as soon as they had finished their house on Selliyan VI, they'd discovered Jyn was pregnant again. Cassian couldn't have been happier as she'd given him the news.

"She'll be strong." Jyn said, her eyes set on a point far out on the horizon. Below, they could hear the children's shrieks and cries of happiness as they played in the water.

"Rey." Cassian hummed, feeling his daughter kick out at his hand. Jyn nodded, leaning her head on his shoulder.

* * *

Cassian Andor started awake, light years away from the memory of his past. The first thing he was aware of was the pain in his left hip, shooting down his leg. It was constant now, never giving him more than a moment's rest.

And the dreams.

If he closed his eyes, he could feel Jyn's hand on his knee, her voice whispering in his ears. Time hadn't dulled that, just like time hadn't suppressed the whispers of Scariff, though nearly 4 decades stood between him and that long-ago battle. The ghosts were still there.

Cassian sat up in his dark bunk. The comm panel beeped at him.

"Yes." He hissed at the comm as he swung his legs gingerly over the edge.

"General Andor, General Solo wishes to have a word with you."

"I'll be there in a minute." He growled. "Lights." His spacious quarters were illuminated. He closed his eyes one last time, clinging to Jyn's memory for one last precious moment.

"Cassian, GO!" She screamed at him, tossing two blasters his way. He threw one to Kelton and all but tossed his daughter Jayonn out the door. She was screaming, crying about some lost doll.

Real-time Cassian pulled himself out of the memories before they could consume him. Leia reassured him that the pain would fade, that the memories of the New Order stealing away his life, love and happiness would fade. He listened, but he didn't have the heart to tell her that if the echoes of Scariff hadn't faded in almost forty years, the loss of his children and wife would likely haunt him to his death.

In some ways, they complimented each other. Leia mourned the loss of her husband, son, and brother. Luke's disappearance wounded her as deeply as Han walking out, unable to take the strain of losing their only child. The loss of everything dear bound them to the Rebellion all the more strongly, continuing the fight as best they could.

"Leia." Cassian said, finding her at her seat in Base Command, deep in thought.

"It's that pilot." Leia said. "He's run into trouble on Jakku."

"Dios mio..." Cassian swore. "Do they know everything?"

"Ben's there." Leia's brown eyes fixed on him. Cassian set his lips in a line.

"If we lose him, we lose him. What's another boy, a droid and an x-wing?" He said.

"Good heavens!" C-3PO exclaimed, having clanked into their conversation unceremoniously. "If my counterpart R2-D2 could hear you talk about droids that way! I never!"

If Cassian's body had been up to it, he might have socked the droid for some relief. Things had been going badly for the Resistance, they were always holding on by the skin of their teeth. Leia looked at him in her mothering way, reaching out to soothe him through The Force. He didn't know how she did it, but then again... She was a politician, used to dealing with people.

An aide ran up with something for Leia to look over, and Cassian took the opportunity to sit down, stretching his bad leg in front of him. He let his eyes fall shut. As usual, the presence of The Force intruded on his thoughts whether he liked it or not.

Deep down, Cassian knew that his wife and children were out there in the Galaxy. Well, two of them. He'd buried one son and one daughter nearly twenty years ago on Selliyan VI, time couldn't erase those scars. But The Force hadn't lied to him yet. He knew that for better or worse, two of his children and his wife were somewhere out in the stars.

* * *

Rey blinked up into the Jakku suns, feeling heat exhaustion nag at her mind. She'd found barely anything that day, her canteen was empty, and she had a long way to go back to Niima outpost if she wanted to make it in time to get her portions that night.

A metallic screech caught her ears, and she was on her feet in a flash. Across the ridge, a little orange droid was caught in another junk trader's net. Hunger spurred her on and Rey sprinted over to Teedo's crawler, using her staff to pull the net away from the ugly little junker and free her prize. Teedo swore at her and continued lunking off.

"Don't worry about him, that's just Teedo." Rey said to the droid, whose round head swiveled around to look at her. He fixed her in his beady little black glass domes. Her stomach growled thinking about how many portions she could get for him. Then he beeped at her.

"You're looking for your master?" She asked. The droid rocked back and forth on his round body and continued beeping shrilly.

"You're waiting for your master. He's coming back for you?" The droid chirped and then watched for her reaction.

"I have people coming back for me too." Rey sighed, looking out at the horizon. The droid rolled up and bonked her shins.

"BB-8? I'm Rey." She said. "Your antenna is bent." She reached out to fix it, bending the wires back into place. BB-8 stared at her.

"Well, come on then. We better hurry. Niima outpost is that way." She led off down the ridge, BB-8 rolling along behind her like a hound. He kept up a chatter the entire way to the outpost that wasn't entirely unwelcome under the hot Jakku suns.


End file.
